Month: December 2017

Happy almost-Christmas! Well, since I won’t be posting on the actual holiday that’s my little early greeting. Plus, I’m confused about when to post good holiday wishes. Somebody already wished me a merry Christmas in an e-mail a few days ago and then there’s the fact we’re celebrating on 24th but most of you do on 25th so …

Anyway. That’s neither here nor there and you came here for some leisurely weekend reading, right? So that’s what I’m giving you and wishing you a very

Merry Christmas! May it be as small or big, as loud or silent or a celebration as you wish for. Maybe even a little bit of snow*?

In the wellness/healthy living blog world, we talk a lot about our bodies changing shape over the course our lives and this is a great argument on why our minds will – should! -, too, and that this actually is a wonderful thing.

Behind every shiny Christmas card you’re getting is a person with a life no less messy than your own, gifts list can be ignored (see explanation of what this means in the post) and above all: it’s okay to do things your own way.There’s no standard protocol to follow around Christmas.

Yes, it’s obviously easier said than done – nothing worth doing comes easily – but it’s definitely possible to come to terms with your life right now rather than wait for some undefined distant future “perfection”.

When food makes us feel anxious, it’s time to listen to expert like these. Because food fears are irrational but these are some relieving reminders and rational tips. Suitable not just for the holiday season but any special meal/event involving more indulgent foods.

It can absolutely feel like they’d never end, hard to understand, uncertainty being the one overarching feeling but I think most of us will remember that previous big storm in our lives that did end at some point, too.

Before I get into today’s post: yes, it’s been a while and part of that way my laptop being a pain in the a** again, either constantly crashing or not letting me long into either my WordPress or my Gmail account [has this happened to anybody else before??]. Le sigh. Because it’s Christmas Eve on Sunday and I’ll be traveling the day before that, the Good good links for this week will find their way onto the blog on Friday already.

So where have I been? It’s been very silent on the blog after my previous post. Theoretically, I could leave it at the good old “life happened” explanation and in a way you could say that, yes, it did indeed. But not in the average busy-with-work-meeting-family-and-friends way. I genuinely wish it was [just] that. And just as a heads up before I go on here, I want to stress that I’m not writing any of the following to ask for sympathies or be that annoying vague-talking blogger [though I’m sure it might still sound like that to some]. I don’t like people to do that so I won’t, either. Rather, I’m sharing this because – as I have explained before – I can’t not at least hint at what’s going on behind the scenes and pretend life was all sunshine, rainbows and unicorns. It’d feel like lying to you. What happened is that a regular visit at my doctor’s brought about a diagnosis that will change my life and left me in shock. Tears. Sadness. Guilt.

Some moments I’m dealing okay [as in: distracting myself as best as I can] but a lot of the time, it’s hard. Sorry I’m being vague but I honestly have told a mere three people in real life so far, not planning on expanding the circle of people in the know, so I hope you’ll understand. There were and are moments when I consider[ed] quitting the blog – the sad moments – but others where I absolutely want to keep writing and staying in touch with all of you. The moments when I test new recipes to hopefully share here or think of topics I still want to talk about.

Whew, this is getting long already so without further ado, I decided to steer clear of heavy topics for now [the post I’d originally planned on writing] and just talk about recent things and favourites. Because even though the diagnosis is final, I don’t want to live my life thinking about and focusing on it 24/7 – that’s no solution. Onto the better things in life, my silver linings in every day.

A major favourite, especially given it snowed properly for the first time recently [all melted away by now, though]?
Christmas music and singing and dancing along. Key to brightening your mood in an instant even if your PE teacher – thanks for nothing, Mrs. S – in school attested you a complete lack of feeling for rhythms. Dance like nobody’s watching. Taylor Swift. have I been living under a rock to only now accidentally finding she’s back on Spotify? Denying this for the reason alone that it’s [literally] living behind the moon in my language 😉. Very convincing Argumentation. Dancing around to my Christmas playlist – hello there, Mr. Buble – while preparing the Semmelknödel might have slowed me down ever so slightly but worth it.

[Not a pretty picture by any means but that’s what eating late and with impatient family members gets you]

So: Christmas! What are your plans? Whom are you celebrating with? What are you having for dinner? What are some of your family’s traditions? It’ll be the first year celebrating Christmas Eve – the main celebration day/evening around here – without my sister [and as such P., obviously] which is … weird. She’s with her husband’s family on Christmas Eve but the three of them will drive over to our house the next day. My parents, brother and I are celebrating Christmas Eve at my grandparents’. Only the six of us on 24th, then a huge family gathering on 25th. And for once, I actually had all my gifts ready a good week ahead of the big day. That’s pretty much of a first [in many years] for me which could be either a win or embarrassing … I can. not. wait. to hand my presents over and see how the recipients like them because I think I found some real surprises.

New Christmas chocolate. My taste in chocolate is honestly quite boring. I don’t care for anything filled and nine times out of ten, will grab my regular 80 % cocoa bar. But this seasonal organic one caught my attention on Instagram and when luck would have it being available at my tiny local health food store, I knew I was supposed to buy it. The verdict? Delicious. Still not my #1 which is positive because it’d be a pity with it being seasonal only but definitely worth the money.

Maybe not really a favourite because it was a once-only experience but our office Christmas “party” was great. Rather than just following the standard procedure of going to a restaurant, one of my bosses suggested having a cook-out. It’s a lucky accident these sort of evenings [think of something like a semi-guided cooking class with a dietitian] are even offered in this area, given it’s very rural. While I didn’t get to take any good pictures that evening, the memories I made are unforgettable. Cooking and dining a six-course dinner together allowed for a wholly different level of connecting with each other. I’d definitely recommend this to any company – worth suggesting to your boss for the next gathering.

If you read all of the above, especially the first part: thank you! Now tell me about your week, your plans for Christmas, favourite Christmas songs, movies – anything!

Happiness-inducing today:Scheduling plans to go to the movies with a friend tonight. Another one of those much appreciated distractions plus meeting friends is always a good idea.

This is probably the most unprepared I’ve ever been regarding these posts. The weeks flew by and I found myself with maybe two or three links collected on Thursday. Meaning I did some more intense reading these past few days to come up with enough for a post. Right now, I have many more tabs opened in my browser that I’ve yet to read so I might add those to the next good good links. As always, share any must-reads you’ve come across in the comments.

Shame feeds on secrecy so the ultimate but also hardest way of breaking through and handling it is in sharing. I actually experienced this very strongly the other week. The shame was hard to bear and I needed to tell somebody in order not to drown in it.

Another truly amazing post by Robyn. Loving the life it allows you to live rather than the shape your body has is – I’ll dare say it – the goal of pretty much every girl/lady in the healthy living/fitness scene of our generation.

First: there’s no need to feel ashamed if you, too, have to make this move. Second: these tips are golden. It’s easy to slip back into the old parent – child roles for both sides but these will help prevent it.

Not just for Thanksgiving but all holidays or even any bigger family gathering because – fellow introverts will relate – those can be very overwhelming and make us feel ‘bad’ for not mingling with the crowd like everybody else.